Back in olden times, novelty barnstorming baseball teams were all the rage. While squads of all women, all Asians, and all blacks were popular, maybe no game was as indelibly memorable as the Snorkeys vs. the Hoppers: the former, a team of one-armed players; the latter, a collection of one-legged opponents. »11/26/14 3:13pm 11/26/14 3:13pm

New Yorkers: If you dig smart people talking sports, you should check out Hang Up and Listen LIVE! on October 8th in Brooklyn. Your regular podcasters Stefan Fatsis, Josh Levin, and Mike Pesca will be there, along with special guest Roy Blount, Jr. You can find more information here. »10/01/14 1:27pm 10/01/14 1:27pm

Despite being one of the most infamous coaching meltdowns in history and either the first or second thing that comes to mind when you hear the name Bobby Knight, there is one crucial aspect of The Incident With The Chair that is consistently misremembered: the type of chair he chucked across the floor. »2/25/14 6:02pm 2/25/14 6:02pm

Last month, Kansas City Chiefs fans broke CenturyLink Field's record for world's loudest stadium. Not long ago, however, that kind of in-game crowd noise was explicitly forbidden in the NFL rule book. This isn't all that surprising, as the NFL has a habit of hating its fans. »11/19/13 4:42pm 11/19/13 4:42pm

The fight for the future fandom of New York's children has finally been memorialized in the instant classic, "Who Do You Like Better, The Knicks or the Nets?" As expected, the lyrics prepare today's youth for the existential agony that is being a Knicks fan, without addressing that other team at all. »11/13/13 5:06pm 11/13/13 5:06pm

Darrell Wallace Jr. became the second black driver to win a NASCAR national series event on October 26th. The first was Wendell Scott back in 1963. While not exactly the Jackie Robinson of NASCAR, the tribulations Scott endured during his racing career were severe »11/05/13 10:52am 11/05/13 10:52am

In the days since Lou Reed's death, you've undoubtedly come across numerous eulogies lauding the man and his varied interests. But one side of him you probably haven't heard much about is his sports fandom. This week on Slate's Hang up and Listen, Mike Pesca enlightens us on the topic of Reed's relationship to sports. »10/30/13 4:10pm 10/30/13 4:10pm

The Ashley Whippet Invitational is the world's premier athletic competition for dogs that excel at catching frisbees, and it wouldn't exist if not for the contributions of its namesake. On this week's excerpt from Slate's Hang up and Listen, Josh Levin takes a look back at the career of the greatest frisbee-catching… »7/26/13 4:46pm 7/26/13 4:46pm

Team doctors are a vital part of any NBA team. They are counted on to manage sprains, guide players through rehab, and help cure any number of physical maladies that might befall members of the team. Matt Bonner discovered the value of his team doctor when he got his head split open by an errant elbow, but he also… »6/18/13 1:47pm 6/18/13 1:47pm

The United States Olympic basketball team, finding itself short on centers, wanted to add Indiana Pacers big man Roy Hibbert to its roster before the 2012 summer games. There was just one problem: Hibbert belonged to the Jamaican national team. On this week's excerpt from Slate's Hang Up and Listen podcast, Josh Levin… »6/14/13 6:06pm 6/14/13 6:06pm

Is a baseball card worth more money if the player on it is white? Perhaps! On this week's excerpt from Slate's Hang up and Listen podcast, Mike Pesca runs through the many studies have been done on the subject of racial bias and baseball card values, many of which posit that racism has long driven down the value of… »6/07/13 7:08pm 6/07/13 7:08pm

Every year at the NBA draft combine, each prospect gets his height measured with shoes on and off. The difference between the two measurements is usually negligible, but not all the time! On this week's excerpt from Slate's Hang up and Listen podcast, Mike Pesca figures out which of this year's prospects has the… »5/24/13 4:02pm 5/24/13 4:02pm

One of the last remaining grand achievements to be had in the world of competitive running is the sub-two-hour marathon. The current world record—held by Kenyan Patrick Makau—sits at two hours, three minutes, and thirty-eight seconds. But many wonder, is it possible to run a marathon in under two hours? »5/17/13 5:35pm 5/17/13 5:35pm

So we know who made up the class of 2013 at the Baseball Hall of Fame: no one. Well, OK, the veterans committee voted in Hank O'Day, Col. Jacob Ruppert, and Deacon White. But they all died in the 1930s; we wouldn't expect much in the way of induction speeches. »5/10/13 6:24pm 5/10/13 6:24pm